2Wire Gateway...is it necessary?

[acthetank3]

I recently moved into a new house and signed up for Uverse (internet only).  The house that I moved into was wired very well. Each room has an Ethernet jack and phone jack. All lines run to a central location in the basement. The central location has a 66 block where all phone lines are wired (cables are actually a Cat5e cables). The Ethernet cords are currently not connected to anything. When the Tech came to do the install he asked my gf (I was not home at the time) where we wanted "the router." She told him in the office which is located on our second floor.  The tech connected the incoming Ethernet cable (by incoming I mean the cord that is coming from outside of the house where the ATT Box is located) directly to the Ethernet cord that runs to our office. The line is spliced due to the fact that the data cable for the 2wire is RJ11 (phone cable). So although the end result is a "router" in the office the tech basically set up the system in such a way that I cannot use the wiring in the house.

After doing some research online and talking with some IT guys at my company I have come up with some possible solutions. I purchased a switch for all of the Ethernet cables that run to to the rooms in my house. So to put in in layman's terms the "flow of data" would be something like this.

Ethernet cord froming from outside connects to 2Wire Unit in my basement. I then connect the 2Wire to the switch. The switch then connects to all outgoing Ethernet cords that go to the various rooms in my house. This would all me to have a hardwire hook up in every room. Additionally, I will be turning off the wireless function of the 2Wire setting up my own wireless router in the house.

I understand that I am absolutely oversimplifying this questions, but what purpose is the 2Wire serving. From what one of the IT guys told me (granted he may be working off bad information from me) was that it appears the 2Wire is simply an access point not the actual modem. So can I just take the incoming Ethernet cord from the ATT box outside and plug it directly into my switch?

Thanks for all of your help and suggestions.

[texasguy37 ACE - Champion]

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acthetank3 wrote:

I understand that I am absolutely oversimplifying this questions, but what purpose is the 2Wire serving. From what one of the IT guys told me (granted he may be working off bad information from me) was that it appears the 2Wire is simply an access point not the actual modem. So can I just take the incoming Ethernet cord from the ATT box outside and plug it directly into my switch?

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No.  Without the U-verse gateway, you will receive no service.

By the way, which 2Wire gateway do you have?

[acthetank3]

I have the 2Wire i38HG. I get great speeds when hard wired into gateway or wirelessly when I'm in the same room. But when I move outside the room where the gateway is located my wireless services drops off dramatically.

I have two main goals. 1 is I'd like to have the house wired in every room which is why I purchased the switch. The gateway only gives me 4 connections and I need more than that. Second, I want to get better range and signal strength from my wireless router. I plan on using my Linksys Router instead of using the gateway. By setting up each room in the house with a hard line I should be able to find which room I can put the router in to get the best signal strength and range.

[texasguy37 ACE - Champion]

The i38HG is actually not your gateway.  It is a breakout box and wireless access point.  The actually gateway is the i3812v (iNID) which is on the side of your house.  You can replace the i38HG with your own wireless router.  See the thread below:

http://forums.att.com/t5/Setup-and-Self-Install/Can-I-use-my-own-wireless-router/m-p/2889585

[acthetank3]

Ok thanks that is what I was looking for. The tech connected the Ethernet cable coming from the i3812v (outside of my house) directly to the cable that runs into my office (connection point is in the basement). So if I understand you correctly I will need to disconnect what he did and recap the wire with an RJ45 cap and connect my router at that stage. Therefore eliminating the i38HG and using only my router. Can I connect the incoming Ethernet cable (the one coming from outside) into a switch? this would allow me to connect all of my rooms in my house. and then I could connect the router anywhere in my house?

I used your thread about interfearence and was able to change channels. Only saw a slight improvement, but the program did allow me to see where the weak spots are in my house with the router in its current location. Thanks for your help.